


A New Chapter

by lovelydepths



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Babies, Childbirth, Established Relationship, F/M, Family, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Kid Fic, Multi, New Family, Parent Tony Stark, Parenthood, Pregnancy, Schmoop, Team as Family, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-09-26
Updated: 2015-07-19
Packaged: 2017-12-14 12:58:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 14,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/837141
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovelydepths/pseuds/lovelydepths
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Genius, Billionaire, Playboy, Philanthropist, Father? Tony and Pepper are in for the surprise of a lifetime.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Subject to Change

It was well past midnight and Pepper had hardly blinked an eye since getting into bed hours prior. After continual tossing and turning she figured it was as good a time as any to get an answer to the pressing question in her mind. Tony was sawing logs next to her; Pepper didn’t even bother trying to be quiet while walking to the master bath on the opposite side of the room.

Just a few moments later Pepper sat crouched against the bathroom wall, a strip of plastic clutched in her shaking palm. She was nearly four weeks late, nauseous and constantly exhausted. Far in the back of her mind she already knew what the outcome of the test in her hand was going to be, but a lingering voice in her mind kept pressing the possibility of all the signs being pure coincidence.

_Snowballs chance in hell._

A small shred of her from time to time wondered what it would be like to have a child, to be a mother. However, she let that prospect go when she fell in love with Tony Stark. The couple had never gone into depth on the topics of marriage or children; those were things people with normal lives did, not world-saving billionaires and their girlfriends. It was simply never part of their plan, and Pepper had accepted that, but plans could always be subject to change.

Tony rustled around the cold bed, finding Pepper’s usual side empty. He panned around the dark room, sitting up only to see a strip of light shining from underneath the bathroom door.

On the other side of that door anxiety thrummed through Pepper’s body. What was only supposed to take minutes felt like hours. There was no way Tony would ever be ready for something like this, hell, she wasn’t even ready for anything even remotely close to this. She counted days that he came home alive as a blessing, adding a child to the uncertainty of that equation just seemed unfair.

She looked down at the little LCD screen to see one simple word, _Pregnant_.

From that moment onward she knew her life was never going to be the same.

Tony heard a light sob coming from the other side of the room. He padded over to the bathroom door and knocked gently. “Pep… are you alright?” He muttered, still half asleep.

It took her a minute to calm down and reduce the light sobs to sniffling. “Yeah… I’m alright,” she eventually let out. “I’ll be out in just a second.”

He knew something wasn’t right with her, but he didn’t push too much. “You sure? You’ve been in there a while.”

Pepper quickly wiped her eyes, stood up, shoved the test in a cabinet under the sink, and opened the bathroom door. She locked eyes with him immediately, “I’m fine.”

“If you say so,” he conceited. He pressed a quick kiss to her cheek and made his way back to his side of the bed. 

* * *

 

Just a few days later Pepper found herself on the bathroom floor yet again. Rather, this time with her head in the toilet.

After fifteen minutes of on and off vomiting she got herself up, brushed her teeth, and made her way downstairs. She walked into the kitchen to find Tony, flipping pancakes over the stove. She made herself comfortable at one of the barstools at the island and began nonchalantly tapping away at a tablet. Tony made his way over with a plate of blueberry pancakes that were only slightly burnt.

“Pep, are you okay,” he questioned. “You’ve been acting a little weird lately.”

“I’m fine,” she shrugged at him. “I’ve just been a little out of sync the past couple days, that’s all.”

Tony furrowed his brows at her, “…and all the puking?”

“I must have just caught a bug,” Pepper replied calmly.

He shook his head and set a plate of pancakes in front of her, “Whatever you say.”

She instantly felt a gag form in her throat, “Blueberries?”

“What?” Tony’s face crinkled in confusion again. “I thought you liked blueberries.”

She just shook her head in response as she sprung up and dashed to the closest bathroom. Five minutes later she emerged from the bathroom, face flourished with embarrassment.

When she came back out he walked over to her and put her hands on her shoulders, “You are not okay, I can't put my finger on what but something is up with you,  
Look, I gotta head out for DC, but please promise me you’ll take it easy ‘til I get back.”

She opened her mouth to protest, but he put a finger up to stop her, “Just until I get back.”

Pepper only rolled her eyes at him in response, “Honey, you never ever ever take a break. Please, just relax, feel better, take a damn nap. No work, no meetings. Just until Friday, deal?”

“Fine,” she said unenthusiastically. “I’ll miss you.”

He brought her into an embrace, kissing her. “Bye, babe, I love you.”

“I love you too.”

* * *

 

 After Tony had left Pepper paced around the house, unsure of what to do with herself. Eventually, she gave up on the battle going on in her mind. She picked up the phone and made a doctor’s appointment for later that day, just to be one hundred and ten percent sure.

That afternoon came shortly and she was off to the doctor. Once she arrived at the office and filled out the usual paperwork and then waited in slight agony, but eventually was led into an exam room by a nurse.

She then sat in silence for another round of waiting. This didn’t feel real to her; she felt like she was in some cheesy chick flick. Unlike the movies, real life didn’t always include a happy ending. She didn’t dare to even begin thinking about how or when she was going to tell Tony. She was also sure he wouldn’t have the most pleasant reaction. All of her racing thoughts came to a halt when she heard a slight knock on the door, followed by the doctor entering the room.

“Hello, Pepper,” Dr. Reynolds greeted just a little too brightly as she walked in, “How are we?”

She took a deep breath, finding it difficult to get the words out of her mouth. Sure she had been thinking about it almost constantly, but for some reason saying it out loud made it seem too real. “I’m alright,” she sighed, with a forced smile on her face. “I was a few weeks late, so I took a home pregnancy test and it came out positive, I just wanted to confirm that.”

“Certainly,” the doctor said while turning on the sonogram machine, “Let’s have a look.”

Pepper laid back and bunched her shirt up until the hem was above her navel. She jerked a bit when the cold gel was squeezed on her lower abdomen. The doctor began to scan Pepper’s lower torso and turned the screen so she could see. After a couple of moments she began to hear a rapid thud. “There’s the heartbeat,” the doctor smiled. “You are, in fact, pregnant.” Pepper then saw a little flutter on the screen, “There’s your baby.”

She scanned around for a bit longer, nodding at the screen, “I’d say you’re just shy of ten weeks along. Due about the first week of February.”

“Ten weeks?” Pepper’s face was laced with confusion, “I don’t understand, I only remember missing one period.”

Dr. Reynolds nodded back at her, “It’s very common for women to have spotting the first week of pregnancy, usually mistook for a period.”

Pepper thought back for a minute, what she thought was her last period had been a bit lighter than normal, she hadn’t thought much about it just blaming it on stress.

She was just slightly off

* * *

 

Later on that she came to a point of realization. Finally feeling calm and able to breathe for the first time since finding out.

After having heard the heartbeat, seeing the little flutter on the screen, she knew. Her baby. No, their baby, half her and half Tony. She knew it was their baby, that was somehow meant to be, and no matter what the situation it was their baby to love and care for. Despite how difficult it may be, or however Tony may take the news, nothing mattered.  
difficult it may be, or how he would react to the news, nothing else mattered.


	2. Stress

Pepper woke up the next morning at her usual early hour and immediately got up, ready, and dressed. She aimlessly sat around the house, bored out of her mind. Ultimately, she decided if she didn’t go down to the office she was going to lose her mind, promise be damned.

She drove to the Stark Industries offices and was greeted in, until she reached her office. That’s when she found Happy, slumped in one the armchairs in the waiting area outside of her office, casually reading a newspaper. She immediately knew Tony had put him up to it.

“Hello Happy, I was just…” Pepper stared with a smile she hoped would get her past.

He stood firmly in front of the door, arms crossed, “I don’t think so, Miss Potts. This area is off limits.”

Pepper sighed, “Tony put you up to this, didn’t he?”

“Yes ma’am, Mr. Stark gave me explicit instruction, you can be anywhere but here,” Happy said with a nod.

Damn that man for knowing her so well

She most definitely should have seen this coming; Tony had no doubt she couldn’t stay away from the office, even just for a day. That was just typical Pepper, and it was typical pain in the ass Tony to enlist Happy to keep her from work.

“Fine,” Pepper said coolly, turning on her heel to leave the building.

She sat in her car for a bit, yet again clueless as to where to go. As if a sign her stomach growled and suddenly the thought of ice cream sounded really, really good. And grilled cheese.

That led her to the aisle of the grocery store, leaving with a whole cart full of various foods. While she was out she decided it beneficial to stop by a health store and pick up a bottle of prenatal vitamins and a couple pregnancy and parenting books.

The rest of her evening consisted of What to Expect When You’re Expecting with a side of vanilla ice cream

* * *

 

Pepper woke up the next morning to the sound of Jarvis’ curt voice, “Miss Potts, may I suggest that you wake now as Mr. Stark is scheduled to return in approximately ninety minutes.”

She was still in the same yoga shorts and tank top she had been lounging in the night before, the book open and face down on the couch next to her and a bowl of melted ice cream on the coffee table. Her eyes shot up to the clock, 8:30.

She immediately sprung up, dashing around to clean her mess from the night before, remembering to stash the books she had bought on the top shelf of her closet. With just under an hour to spare she jumped into the shower, dried her hair, and got dressed. She was just walking out of the bathroom when she heard the heavy front door slam shut.

 

Pepper walked out into the kitchen to find Tony, duffle bag still hanging from his shoulder with his head in the freezer. He turned around, sticking his spoon back in a pint of ice cream and setting it on the counter. “Hey honey,” he said around a mouthful of ice cream, “Nice choice.” They rarely had any sort of junk in the fridge, he always complained about Pepper being a pain with all her healthy and organic choices.

Smiling, she walked over to him and he caught her in a warm embrace, setting his bag slamming to the floor. She nuzzled her head into his neck, “I missed you so much.” He let out a pleasant laugh, “I missed you too, Pep.” He leaned his head down and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. Pepper felt herself began to tear up at the happiness of seeing him. Damn hormones

They ended up lying in bed, he head pressed against his chest and his arm tight around her waist. There was a movie playing in the background, but neither of them was really paying attention to it. With perfect timing Pepper felt a gag forming in her throat and she began to cough, on the verge of throwing up. She was forced to abruptly sit up and throw the covers off.

“Pep, are you okay?” Tony asked, alarmed, putting a comforting hand over her back.

She shot up and darted to the bathroom, just barely making it to the toilet.

“Pepper, what’s the matter?” Tony yelled from the bed.

“I’m okay,” She lied, lifting her head from the toilet, stomach throbbing. Once she was finished, she laid back against the wall, rubbing her midsection. Eventually she collected herself and walked back into the bedroom, only to find Tony passed out cold. She had been in the bathroom for no more than fifteen minutes, but that was Tony for you.

“I’m pregnant,” she said softly to herself.

* * *

 

The following morning Pepper was up bright an early as usual, she had a meeting that was scheduled to take up most of her day. She didn’t see Tony until she got home later that evening.

She walked through the front door and met him where he was sitting in the living room. “Hey babe,” he said walking over to her, kissing the breath out of her.

“Are you sure you’re feeling okay, because you have been so far from yourself lately,” he pushed a lock of hair behind her ear, “You’ve been all sick and puking and I’m just really worried, so please just tell what’s up.”

She took a deep breath and sat down on the couch, kicking her heels off and he joined her. She took another breath to settle her nerves, doing her best to look anywhere but at him.

Eventually she did, “I uh… I’m pregnant,” she said calmly.

His eyes instantly went wide and his face went a tad white. He sat there speechless for a moment, trying to soak in the jolting news.

“You’re ah… you’re what?” He questioned dumbfounded, sinking down on the couch in shock.

“Pregnant, Tony,” She said, looking at him straight in the eye. “We’re having a baby.”

He rubbed the back of his neck, “You’re completely sure?”

“Yes,” she sighed. “I went to the doctor while you were gone.”

Tony sat there in silence for another long minute, eventually standing up. He blankly grabbed his keys and started making his way to the front door.

“Where are you going?” Pepper questioned with a nervous tone

“I, uh, I just need to go clear my head.” He said blankly

She followed behind him, gently grabbing his arm, “Tony, can’t we just sit and talk about this?”

He turned back and looked at her, “I’m sorry, I just need to be alone for a while.”

“Can we please j-“

“I didn’t ask for this,” he whispered under his breath as he darted through the foyer.

She heard the door shut and sat there alone, tears starting to make their way down her face.


	3. Words from the Widow

Tony drove around aimlessly for a while, his thoughts racing a million miles a second. How could this have happened? The prospect of having a child had never crossed his mind; how could a child possibly fit into his lifestyle? Now completely out of nowhere he was having a child. Wouldn’t he just end up turning into his own father? No child deserved that. His mind was still marred with childhood memories of solitude and sadness.

Eventually he made his way to some drafty dive bar Clint had brought the team to once before. He went up to the bar and ordered his usual draft and sat there wallowing in his thoughts for a while. Out of nowhere he caught a familiar glimpse of red out of the corner of his eye and his stomach nearly dropped. Confirmation came when he heard a husky voice, “Stark?”

Tony turned his head and there she was, right next to him. “Romanoff,” he said, shooting her a surprised look. “Fancy running into you here.”

“Why yes,” she rolled her eyes, “if you must know I’m picking up take-out for Clint and I,” she added with the slightest twinge of a smile. “What’s going on with you? You look like shit.”

“Thanks,” he snorted, taking a swig of beer. He was always left dumbfounded at how she did that. Natasha could simply glance at a person and know their innermost thoughts. He just shrugged.

“Spill,” she said, taking the barstool next to him.

Tony sighed, he truly trusted Natasha, they had been through a lot together over the years. The whole Natalie Rushman, palladium poisoning, him almost dying ordeal followed by New York and various missions and world-saving in between. They went far back and believe it or not, he truly confided in her.

“Well,” he scratched the back of his neck, “Pepper’s pregnant.”

The news made Nat’s eyes go a bit wide, nearly spitting out what he was sure was vodka. “Wow, way to go, Stark.”

“Well ah… that’s not exactly the entire story.” 

She pulled her signature raised eyebrow, “You’re not happy about it?”

“I dunno,” he started. “When she told me I just sorta blanked. I told her I needed to go clear my head.” He paused for a brief moment, “Here I am.” 

She stared at him for a long second and shook her head. “And?” How the hell did this woman do that? Natasha could see straight through him, she knew he was holding back the worst.   
“I may have said something along the lines of ‘I didn’t ask for it.’”

She looked at him with a downright icy death glare, “You are a fucking idiot. That woman is the best damn thing that ever happened to you. Even though you may not be happy about the situation, I’d bet she’s even more afraid than you are. Nat paused to take a sip of her drink, “That poor girl is probably sitting at home in tears right now because your dimwitted ass wouldn’t just sit down and talk to her. I’m sure neither of you planned for this, but wake the fuck up, Stark. Whether you like it or not, you’re going to be a father. So get your shit together, go buy her some flowers, and go home and fix this.”

Tony was silent for a bit, taking in all the blatant honesty that was just spit at him. “You’re right, I am a fucking idiot.” He stood up from his seat, “I gotta go fix this, thanks for slapping me with the harsh truth, Nat.”

“Anytime, Stark.”

He threw a few bills on the bar for their drinks and headed toward the door.

“One last thing,” Nat said. "Congratulations, daddy."

He smiled back at her in gratitude. 'Daddy,' that was something he was going to have to get used to.


	4. We Have Each Other

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and Pepper sort things out.

Tony had made a quick stop on his way home. He picked out an arrangement of poppies (her favorite) and on his way to check out couldn’t help but notice a little plush grey owl he just couldn’t pass up.

When he got back home he walked in silently and crept back into the living room. He found Pepper sitting cross-legged on the couch with a hand mindlessly rubbing her abdomen. She hadn’t even noticed him walk in.

“Pepper,” he said in a hushed tone to keep from frightening her.

“Hey,” she said, looking up at him with red eyes and a tired face. He automatically knew she had been crying and that felt like a knife to the heart. “What are you um… so what…” she stumbled for the right words and he could hear the hurt in her voice and that cut him right to the core.

“I’m so sorry, Pep,” he walked over to her, leaving the flowers on the coffee table. “I am the world’s biggest jackass.”

“We need to talk,” she interrupted him before he went on. “I just need you to know that no matter what happens, I’m keeping the baby. If you want to be a part of his or her life, that is completely up to you. You can be as involved as you want and I hope that you will be.” 

“Pepper,” he sat down next to her and took her cheek in his palm. “I am not going anywhere. I mean, I’m scared shitless, but I know we can do this.” He wiped a tear that was rolling down her cheek with his thumb, “You are by far the most important piece of my life. I just hope you can forgive me for being such an asshole.”

“That’s all I ever wanted to hear,” she said with another tear making its way down her cheek.

He huffed a laugh a he wiped her tears. Pepper stifled a laugh, “Damn hormones, all I’ve been doing lately is crying,” she sniffled, “…and puking.”

“I think its cute,” he smiled. “More so the crying.” He wrapped his arms around her tightly, “I love you so much.”

“I love you, too,” she took a deep breath and enjoyed the closeness. “What is that?” She questioned, giving the little gift bag a pointed nod.

"Just a little something,” he handed her the bag. “For the baby.”

She unwrapped it carefully and pulled out the soft owl he picked out, "Tony, its perfect."

"It's the very least I could do for being such a jerk," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Thank you for being so amazing, Pep, I would be nothing without you."

"I'm lucky to have you, too, you know." She smiled back at him, "You're all I have."

"Ah, I beg to differ," he remarked in his usual smartass tone, "We've all got each other." He said putting his hand over her belly. "Holy shit we're going to be parents." He laughed.

After a few sweet moments Tony picked her up bridal style and headed down the hallway to their bedroom.

"What are you doing?" She said between giggles.

"Making up for it." Tony paused, the turned his head and gave her an irresistible look and a cheesy smile.


	5. Newfound Excitement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony comes around to the idea of being a father.

A week had barley passed since Pepper had told Tony the news, and he was still coming to terms with that.

It was a Thursday afternoon, and she had just walked in the door from a meeting. She searched the house for a while, until she found him downstairs in the workshop. He was lounging on the couch, flipping through a notebook.

“Hey,” She said in a hushed tone, walking over toward him. She went behind the couch and bent down, putting her chin on his shoulder. The notebook was filled page-to-page with neat cursive, she vaguely recognized. It wasn’t until he slapped it shut and saw ‘H. Stark’ printed on its cover that it all made sense. “Is everything alright?”

He shrugged, “I was just going through some old boxes. All that crap just got my to thinking of how terrible my dad was,” He paused “never was around, even at birthdays or science fairs. Hell, he never even told me he loved me.” She could her the hurt in his voice.

“It’s just, I have no idea how to be a father. What if I just turn into him? I just don’t, want that to be our baby’s life.”

She wrapped her arms tightly around him, “Tony, you and I both know that’s not going to happen. I know neither of our upbringings were picture-perfect, or anywhere near that, but let your past drive you to be the amazing father I know you’ll be.”

She cleared her throat, her voice was growing hoarse “I know we’re both scared out of our minds. I’m so afraid I’m just not cut out to be a mother and would be better off letting someone else raise this baby, but then I think of us and that maybe this happened for some crazy reason, and how just maybe this was supposed to be.”

He turned his head around and looked at her, “A blessed accident,” He said with a laugh “You’re right, Pep you’re already an amazing mother, don’t ever say different, as scared shitless as I am for the road ahead, I know we have each other.”

He pressed a kiss to her lips that made her toes curl, “I love you so much"

 

* * *

 

Later that week Tony started clearing out the room just down the hall from his and Pepper’s.  It was once a modern style guest room, but was now a construction zone.

After a week or so had passed, all the debris was gone and the room was empty except for the drop cloths spread about the floor. Pepper wasn’t overly fond of the deep grey walls, and glass furniture, she wanted a softer feel for somewhere a newborn would be spending most of their time 

Pepper was standing in the empty room, Tony had just brought in the last can of beige-tone paint Pepper had picked out.

He set it down with a grunt, and smiled over at her. “So, sooner or later we can find out what the baby is...”

“Hey,” She said with a playfully offended face “you know I want it to be a surprise.”

“C’mon Pep! Don’t you wanna know?” He fought back “Then you can know what color shit to buy and start organizing and color-coding.”

The man knew his audience.

She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth, “But the suspense, it’s exciting. 

“The news of this baby was exciting enough for me,” He laughed “Come on! I am way to impatient to wait that long.”

She caved, with Tony she would never win. “Alright,” She sighed, “I suppose we can find out the gender.” She said looking down, with a hand resting on the small swell of her belly.

Pepper spent the rest of the evening relaxing, while Tony painted, and eventually fell asleep. She woke up when she rolled over and instead of feeling Tony pressed up next to her, it was just cold sheets. She sat up and saw it was past midnight, so she got up and started looking around. The bathroom was empty, so she walked out into the hallway and passed by the nursery which was completely painted, and the drop cloths gone, which made her smile.

After looking around a little while longer she found Tony passed out on the couch with her copy of ‘ _What to Expect When You’re Expecting’_ flipped open beside him, and she couldn’t help but smile again.

“Tony.” She said quietly, hoping not to scare him

He grunted and turned over “Pepper?” he said, lazily opening his eyes “What time is it?”

“Past two,” She said with a small laugh “How about you come to bed now?”

“Fuck, I really zoned out.” He said standing up

"Thank you for painting, it turned out really nice."

"No problem." He said following her back into the bedroom

* * *

 

{two weeks later}

Pepper woke up in early in the morning, just as she always did. Upon getting up she realized Tony wasn’t in his usual spot next to her, which was very unusual for that early in the morning.

There was no sign of him in their bedroom or bathroom, so she carried on.  She stopped short while making her way down the hall, at the nursery. There he was sitting on the glider, tapping away at his tablet.

“Good morning sunshine!” He said, all too excited for Tony Stark at this hour in the morning.

“Morning,” She replied behind a yawn, “You’re quite cheerful for this early.”

He just replied with a cheesy grin, and she rolled her eyes.

“Don’t you know what today is?”

“September 8th?” She said in her ‘do I sound like an idiot’ tone

“Well technically yes, but....” he said expecting her to complete his though

“Do enlighten me,” She said in her same tone as before

“Doctors appointment, finding out what the baby is.”

“Oh, right,” she said in remembrance “appointment at nine.”

“Wanna grab breakfast before we go?” he said with a grin “I can’t wait Pep!”

“Anxious much?” she said trying not to laugh at him

Pepper took a quick shower, got dressed and was ready to go within the hour. They ended up in a little breakfast dive. Tony picked at a plate of pancakes and a side of bacon, modest compared to Pepper who cleared two plates of waffles and a side of bacon and eggs. 

“Jeez Potts, when did you become a truck driver?”

“Shut up, supporting the development of your child isn’t the easiest of tasks. I’m technically eating for two.” She bit back in theatrical offense

“That’s what they all say.” He sighed, before being jabbed in the ribs by her.

 


	6. It's a...

They arrived at the doctor’s office, signed in, took vitals, and we’re shown to an exam room where they were waiting for the doctor. 

Tony was extremely anxious to find out the baby’s gender. He claimed that he didn’t care what the baby was, but him and Pepper both knew he was hoping for a boy.  On the other hand, Pepper genuinely didn’t care what the baby was. She still wanted it to be a surprise, but having a baby with Tony Stark that was impossible. 

The doctor came in with the knock on the door. “Hello Pepper, how are you doing?” Dr. Reynolds greeted all too cheerfully “Any new symptoms or discomfort?”

“I’ve been alright, just the usual morning sickness, cravings, fatigue. Nothing new.” She nodded back at her 

“Good, well let’s have a look.” The doctor said, switching on the ultrasound machine

The doctor began to scan around, and stopped when they started to hear a rapid thud. “That’s the heartbeat,” the doctor explained “it’s nice and strong.”

“Holy shit that’s amazing.” Tony said looking up at the screen in awe, then at Pepper who rolled her eyes at his language.

The doctor kept scanning, pointing out the baby’s heart, head, hands, feet, spine.

About ten minutes Dr. Reynolds finally asked, “So, would you two like to know the gender?” 

Tony’s eyes went wide, “That would be great.” Pepper smiled at the doctor

She scanned around for a few more moments, which was an eternity in Tony’s mind. “Well...” she began, pointing to the screen “If you look here, something isn’t there. It looks like you’re having a girl!”

“Oh my gosh!” Pepper said clasping her hand over her open mouth, starting to feel the tears escaping from her eyes

“Wow,” Tony said with a cheesy grin on his face “well I guess that gonna be a lot of pink shit. 

“Well congratulations you two.” Dr. Reynolds smiled

Tony leaned down and kissed Pepper. “Thank you.” She said with a sense of pride in her word

 

* * *

 

After their appointment, the pair ended up at a baby boutique on Melrose.  I was overpriced, but tasteful, the kind of place only celebrities and genius billionaires shopped at.  Pepper worked quickly in picking out a white crib and matching changing table. Along with some patterned grey and white bedding.

It didn’t take her long to notice Tony was nowhere in sight.  She walked around the store, until she found him poking around the boy’s bedding. “You know buying blue things won’t change the fact we’re having a girl.”

He turned around, holding up a plush Iron Man throw blanket “Look Pep!”

“You’re kidding me, right?” she said, rolling her eyes at him “We are not raising a daughter as egotistical as you.”

“But that’s why you love me.” He mocked at her, throwing the blanket into the basket that was full of little pastel animals and decorations. 

Within a week the nursery was nearly complete.  It was beautiful and everything Pepper had imagined it would be. The furniture was all white; the entire room was warm and cozy. The blanket Tony picked out was folded, sitting on the glider in the corner of the room. He had put up a fight to keep it out of the closet.

One afternoon Tony was walking down the hallway toward the bedroom. On his way he heard soft cries coming through the open nursery door. He stopped, and walked in to find Pepper facing the wall, over the crib.

She was leaning over it with both hands on its edge, looking down into it. He walked up behind her and put his hands on either side of her shoulders, pressing the side of his face against hers. 

“Hey Pep,” He said in his rare, gentle manner “you alright?”

“Um yeah,” she said reaching up to brush a tear running down her cheek “Just these stupid pregnancy hormones,” She paused for a moment, “It’s just crazy to think that soon it won’t be just you and I anymore. She’ll be here so soon, and we have no idea what we’re doing.” She finished letting out a huff of laughter

Tony put his hand on the swell of her bump “You’re right, it’s really crazy to think about.  But she’s going to have everything she’ll ever need, she already had the most amazing mother she could ever want.” 

Pepper loved when Tony was like this, she never would have imagined him to be so sincere and gentle. Back when she was first getting to know him she just assumed he was nothing but a rich jerk, who didn’t give a damn about others. That was the side of Tony that most people never saw, but it was the person she fell in love with.

She reached her head up and kissed him, “You’re going to be an amazing father too, you know.”

That was the moment it really hit him. Sure, he knew they we’re going to have a baby and he was going to be a father, but he realized it was deeper than that.

But this little being half him, half her, would be his litter girl. She would call him daddy, and rely on him, he would be the one to provide for her, to protect and guide her.

“Wow.” Now the tears we’re threatening to fall from his eyes, but he was still too macho. 

After a few moments there another thought hit Pepper, they we’re soon going to be parents, but her parents had to find out at some point.

“You know at some point we’re going to have to go visit my parents, I don’t want them to find out through the media.” She said with a sigh

 “Shit, your right,” he paused for thought, “How about we go this weekend?”

“Jarvis, clear my schedule.”

“Sounds good to me,” She sighed again “I’m not necessary looking forward to this.” 

“Well get through this.” He said with a snicker, “Plus from what I’ve heard, I’m sure they’ll hate me.”


	7. Meet the Parents

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and Pepper take a trip to New York to meet Pepper's parents, not exactly a picture perfect event.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did have to improvise all the details of Pepper's parent's and origin, because after much research I found squat about her beginnings so enjoy all of my headcannons about her early life!

Friday finally rolled around Pepper and Tony were on the jet, to her hometown.  Pepper’s nerves we’re through the roof, the short phone call she had with her mother didn’t make it seem like she was that ecstatic for them to come, almost as if it was an inconvenience, but at least she had Tony to help get her through the weekend.

They landed in the afternoon, and went straight to a hotel. On the way she looked out the car window at the trees, a beautiful sight, she really loved the scenery here, but it was to bad this place was tainted by the memories of her lonely childhood.

Pepper was born in a small, insignificant town in Connecticut. She was an only child, and her parents we’re never really around, causing her to become independent and somewhat lonely. She left home the minute she turned 18, and never looked back.

They we’re getting ready to leave and Pepper was looking at her growing bump when Tony walked into the bathroom.

She let out a sigh. “I’m not sure I’m ready for this.” She said with a hint of nervousness in her tone

He wrapped his arms around her waist and embraced her, “It’ll be fine Pep. We’ll just tell them and leave as soon as you’re ready.”

She nodded and laid her head against his shoulder, “You ready?”

“You bet babe.”

It was a quick fifteen minute drive to her parents house and by the time they arrived Pepper’s hands were sweaty, and shaking. Her loose dress and coat concealed her belly, not as to let the cat out of the bag right away, but if you looked long enough you could see the unmistakable roundness from her usually slim figure.

They walked up the front steps and Tony knocked on the door. Moments later a bitter looking woman that seemed too likely is in her late sixties opened the door.

“Hi mom.” Pepper said in a quiet tone

 Virginia. Come in.,” she said looking Tony from head to toe

They walked in and an equally angered man was sitting on a couch in what looked like the living room. He stood up and joined the others.

“Mom, Dad... this is Tony.” She paused and turned back to him “Tony these are my parents Patricia and Jeffery.”

“Nice to meet you.” Tony said reach his hand out to shake theirs

Afterward they all made their way into the living room.

There was a long and painful silence.

“So Virginia where did you pick this one up?” Her father asked with an added eye roll

She sighed “Well I actually used to work for Tony’s company, and made my way up to being his personal assistant,” She looked up at Tony and smiled, “After some time in that position, we both realized our affection for each other and started our relationship.”

“At least he made you the CEO first...” Her mother said with a snarky voice

“Please mom...that has nothing to do with how Tony and I feel about each other.”

Another unpleasant silence graced the room.

“So Tommy... what’s your story?” Her father chimed in

Pepper rubbed her forehead “It’s Tony...”

Tony began in the nicest tone he could speak in “Well let’s see...I was born in Long Island, raised in Malibu. My parents both passed away when I was a teenager in a car accident and once I graduated I inherited Stark Industries.”

“Hmh.” Was the only noise Jeffery let out

After a brief moment Pepper looked up at Tony and nodded... the moment of truth had arrived

“Well Mom, Dad...the main reason Tony and I came to visit you in person was because we have some news.”

“Don’t say your getting married Virginia...” her mother began “Look at that, whats on your finger, that’s nothing.”

She was pointing at the respectably sized oval-cut diamond on Pepper’s right hand, with a band of smaller sparkling rocks. Tony had given it to her for their first anniversary. It was a token of commitment, which was fine with her, she knew the thought of permanence that came along with marriage frightened him so it was plenty for her.  But now with a baby on the way, it meant a little more.

“No mom, that was an anniversary gift, but that’s beside the point.” She said with her hands beginning to shake.

“Tony and I are um...” she paused for a moment “We’re expecting a baby.”

Yet another silence...except this time it was longer and even more uncomfortable.

Her mother was the first to speak “So what are you going to do?”

“What do you mean?” Pepper asked with a puzzled face

“Are you going to have this _taken care of_?” She said with an innuendo

Pepper’s face immediately turned offended “Excuse me? If by that you mean...abort it or give it away, absolutely not.”

“Please Virginia...what do you know about raising a child? Would you really put a child through that?”

“I should ask the same of you.” Pepper snapped back, outraged “I’m lucky to have escaped a lonely childhood and turn out remotely happy! I was miserable growing up, you’ve given me a wonderful example of how to not raise my daughter, and way to blow your chances of ever being in her life.”

She looked back at Tony “Come on, I want to go now.”

They got up quickly and made for the door, when her mother looked as she was about to say something, but didn’t she just stayed silent and watched her daughter walk out the front door.

She got in the car, with tears rolling down her cheeks. When Tony made his way into the drivers seat he noticed her distress.

“Hey honey, it’s all right.”

She sniffled “No, I’m sorry this was a terrible idea, I should have known this was going to happen.”

He wiped a tear that was rolling down her cheek “You didn’t know they would say such awful things Pep, don’t blame yourself, you tried to make peace and approach it in a gentle manner, but clearly they’re not accepting of that.”

She nodded “I know... its just I try, but then get slapped in the face. But right now I just want to get out of here.”

“So much for renting a hotel room down the street.” He snickered “We can probably go catch a quick flight to the city, how does staying at the tower for a little while sound?”

“That sounds perfect.” She smiled at him “Thank you for being so amazing and supportive, I love you so much.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This Chapter takes place in Late September, Pepper is about 17 weeks along!
> 
> All mistakes are my own, please forgive them!  
> Thank you loves for the feedback!


	8. Telling the Team

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The whole team finds out about baby Stark.

 

It was a quick and seamless flight from Syracuse to the City. Before Pepper knew it they were in a car on the way to the tower, and she was dozing off. 

The next thing she knew Tony was shaking her awake.  "Hey Pep, we're here!" 

It took her a minute, before she was completely conscience, and by that time someone was already carrying their bags up to their floor.

Stark Tower served many purposes. It had floors dedicated to meeting rooms and guest floors; others were science labs and medical areas. The top floors were reserved for Tony, Pepper and the other Avengers. Each had their own floor, and Tony the top three. Among them were gym areas, other amenities and the common room where they all spent time together. It was always bustling and had quite the staff, but it was their second home. Maybe not as quiet as Malibu, but it was home.

"That was a quick 30 minutes," she said with a yawn and small stretch.

"Okay, I have a surprise." Tony said, almost jumping with excitement 

Pepper was caught off guard when it seemed out of nowhere Tony was tying the handkerchief from the pocket of his blazer around her eyes.

"What's this?" she said happily nervous

"You'll see! You just can't peek." He said holding her shoulders, guiding her inside and toward the elevators.

They made it to their floor, and Tony led her in the direction of their bedroom, from what her senses told her, but then they took a left.

He stopped her in the center of the room.

"All right, Pep." He said 

"Can I take this off now?" she asked, starting to reach for the cloth.

"Yep!" He said with a laugh.

She squeezed her eyes shut and pulled the tie, letting the scrap fall to the ground.

She opened her eyes, and her jaw dropped. 

What was once a desolate, unused office had been transformed into a beautiful, nursery that was the perfect compromise of the modern, sleek look Tony wanted, and the soft, cozy feel Pepper wanted.

The walls were a light, soft grey color and on one wall was a sleek white crib with grey and white polka dot sheets, with the plush owl Tony had given to Pepper after their fight and a patterned pink blanket hanging off the edge.

In the other corner was a glider and ottoman that was white with grey piping. The opposite wall housed a matching white changing table that was already stocked, and a dresser, with a little pink lamp, and framed pictures of her and Tony, and a sonogram shot.

Pepper walked to the opposite wall, which was a glass window that took up most of the wall. 

"Don't worry, it's been bulletproofed." Tony smiled

"Tony I love it, it's the perfect space for her, thank you." she said walking over to embrace him.

"No problem, Pep," he said, returning her embrace and kissing the top of her head "Anything for my girls."

After the sentimental moment, a thought entered Tony's mind. "Oh Pep, the entire team is in town and I thought it would be nice to have a dinner and maybe tell them the news."

“That sounds great," Pepper replied with a smile.

A few hours - which included a shower and other getting ready rituals- passed. Then came time to get dressed. Tony slipped on jeans and an AC/DC shirt and was satisfied. Pepper didn't have as much luck.

She ended up with half her closet on the floor, in an effort to somewhat conceal the swell of her belly and added eleven pounds. She eventually gave up her ultimate goal and settled for a pair of leggings and a grey clingy long-sleeve that perfectly outlined the curve of her bump.

 

* * *

 

 

The duo walked onto the communal floor, Clint and Bruce were already busy in the kitchen making dinner, Natasha was sitting on the couch with a book, Thor and Jane sitting at the table talking and Steve flipping through TV channels in a chair next to the couch.

Pepper made a beeline for a seat at the table before anyone could see her midsection; she did so flawlessly while Tony went to help to the best of his ability in the kitchen. They had decided to wait 'til during dinner to tell everyone.

The smell of the home-cooked pasta and garlic bread made her mouth water, and when Clint yelled out "Come and get it!” it was music to her ears. Before she was able to stand up Tony grabbed two plates, and nodded that he'd get a serving for her.

Everyone sat down, began eating, and exchanging usual dinner conversation. Bruce told about a recent trip to an orphanage in Calcutta, Tony poked sarcastic comments toward Natasha who was practically sitting in Clint's lap, and Steve was yapping about something or other that happened seventy years ago.

Then Thor had to suggest a round of champagne, and Clint was quick to hop up and grab a bottle along with eight glasses. Tony shot a worried look over at Pepper, who responded with a nod. It was good as time as any to let the cat out of the bag.

Glasses were poured and passed around. Everybody cheered and took a sip, except for Pepper. Thor, who had been sitting right across from her, was the only one to notice. "Friend Pepper, are you alright? Why did you not participate in the toast?" At that point, everybody had a pretty clear idea.

Tony was the first to chime in. "Way to keep your mouth shut Goldilocks."

He winced when Pepper jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow. "Well..." she paused to look at Tony and smile "Tony and I are expecting."

Everyone's jaw dropped, Natasha just smiled.

Clint was the first to act by slamming one hand on the table, shooting the other in the air and yelled "I call godfather!" He wiped the smile off his face when Natasha jabbed him with her elbow

"Well..." Steve chimed in, raising his glass "to Pepper and Tony, and the new baby."

Once dinner was cleaned up, and everyone began relaxing. Pepper had answered all the routine questions at least twenty-seven times- it's a girl, she's 17 weeks along, they don't have a name picked out, she's due in February, yes Tony was mad at first- along with having her bump touched at least twelve times, which she wasn't exactly fond of.

After many well wishes and a cheesy action movie, everyone called it a night and retired to their floors.

 


	9. Bumps in the Road

They had been in New York for over a week, and had settled in nicely. Tony spent most of his daytime in the lab with Bruce, working on new suit designs, or wreaking havoc as he usually did. Pepper, was working hard as usual, running the company, holding meetings, it was all back to business as usual.

The pregnancy was all going well, Pepper made it a point to go to pre-natal yoga or birthing class once a week, dragging Tony with her. She was adamant about having an all-natural, healthy pregnancy, and it was working out well.

The first bump in the road came along on a Sunday afternoon.  The duo was relaxing on their floor, watching a movie, and enjoying the peace.

Only disturbed when Pepper haphazardly knocked over the full bowl of popcorn that was sitting between them. “Ugh,” Pepper groaned “Why am I so clumsy?”

“Common error.” Tony shrugged, picking up the kernels from the couch

Pepper bent down to clean up fallen pieces on the floor, when they heard the telltale sound of fabric ripping 

They both looked down to see her t-shirt, which granted was tight, had ripped down the curve of her bump.  After a brief silence, Tony broke out in laughter.

“Shut up” She couldn’t help but start laughing, launching a throw pillow at his head

“I know, I’m an asshole.” He said still laughing, taking the mess to the trash

“Well, I really need to stop trying to squeeze into my regular clothes.” She said rolling her eyes at him 

“At least you got a hell of a reminder.” He said dodging another throw pillow

A little while later, Pepper had changed into a looser shirt, and they continued watching the movie, she felt something.

It was a little flutter in her stomach, not like hunger or pains, just a little floating sensation.

She paused the movie and looked over at Tony.  “What is it?” he asked, puzzled

“I think the baby just moved.” She said with excitement, the bubbly feeling starting up in her stomach again

“Holy shit! Can I feel?” he said, putting his hand on her bump, hoping to feel something, but was disappointed to feel nothing.

“Sorry,” Pepper said “I don’t think you’ll be able to feel it on the outside for a few more weeks.” 

“Aw.” He said, his face laced with disappointment

 

* * *

 

 Beside the need for maternity clothes, the actual biggest bump in the pregnancy so far came about a week later.

It was past midnight, and Tony and Pepper were both in bed asleep.

Pepper had gotten up to use the bathroom, just like any one of the other seven times a night she got up to pee. But this time something wasn’t right 

She ran back into the bedroom, flicking on the lights “Tony.” She said, frantic

She had to yell out his name once more before he finally woke.  “Pepper?” he said rubbing his hand over his face “Is everything okay?”

“I’m bleeding.” She said, tears starting to fall


	10. Turning Point

Tony bolted right out of bed the moment his brain processed what Pepper had just said. Bleeding, _bleeding_.

"C'mon," he said pulling a pair of pants over his boxers. "We gotta get down to the med unit, we can call Banner."

She nodded at him, wiping the tears streaming down her cheeks.

Tony walked over to her, embracing her shaking frame. "Hey, hey," he said calmly. "No matter what, it's gonna be okay." She continued to sob into his chest.

He helped her stumble into a pair of leggings, dismissing the blood that had run down her thigh and onto his hand.

"Jarvis," Tony called out, walking with her through the living room to the elevator

"What can I do for you, sir?" The AI promptly replied

"Where's Banner?" he asked, pressing the floor button

"Dr. Banner would be laboratory, as usual for this hour of the night."

"Send him to med, tell him something's wrong."

"He is on his way, sir."

They went down to the medical floor and into one of the rooms, where Bruce met them no more than two minutes later.

"Pepper, Tony." Bruce said as he walked in. "What can I do for you guys tonight?"

"Well, I'm around eighteen weeks and um... just tonight," Pepper said with a distraught tone "just tonight, I started bleeding and having pains."

"Well, I may not be a prenatal expert, but let's have a look." He said nodding at the seldom-used sonogram machine

Pepper nodded as she pulled her tank top, baring the small swell of her belly.

Bruce turned on the ultra-sound machine and stated to scan around Pepper's lower abdomen.

Then they heard an unmistakable sound. Arguably one of the most glorious, relieving sounds either of them had ever heard. That constant, rapid thud.

"There's a heartbeat," Bruce explained. "I'm not seeing any major signs of distress."

At that moment Pepper's heart settled, a weight lifted from her shoulders. Her little girl was still alive and doing okay. She couldn't help but start to tear up.

Bruce began to ask her just about every question one could think of. How was her diet, if she was exercising, any stress, any recent injury and everything else in between.

Bruce scanned around for a few more minutes, before he stopped. "I think I see what the issue is now."

He snapped a couple of ultrasound shots, and made and scribbled down a few notes before turning back to them.

"What I'm seeing is a small tear in the placenta, probably about an inch in length. There's no exact way to tell how it came to be, but I'm sure that's what's causing the bleeding. As for the pain, it looks as if your round ligament is strained. That's the muscle that stretches to accommodate the baby as you both grow and when it becomes strained it tends to cause pains," Bruce explained

He turned and started writing notes down as he continued to talk. "The good news is the baby's heart rate is still strong and where it should be. However I think you should cut out all the cardio and strenuous exercise, stick to things like light workouts and yoga. I also think the stress of the company is getting to be a lot on your shoulders, it may be difficult but some of the workload needs to calm down. Try to take more time to relax and focus on less demanding issues. In the meantime I'll write down a list a vitamins for you to help internally patch up that tear, and just overall keep you feeling well."

"Bruce I can't even begin to thank you for being here at this hour, while our regular doctor is still in California, and just be here for us." Pepper said

"Anytime." Bruce smiled

"Really bro, I owe you one." Tony added in

With Bruce's notes and worry-free minds, they headed back to their floor.

They were just settling back, after cleaning up, when Tony noticed something was still wrong with Pepper.

"Is everything okay, honey?" Tony said getting into bed

"Yeah, it's just," She paused, obviously upset. "I can't help but feel like this was my fault, that I could have prevented coming even remotely close to the possibly losing her. If I wouldn’t have...”

"Stop it, Pepper," he said firmly. "It's all okay, she's okay. We know now what to avoid and how to deal with the problem. Everything worked out, we just have to take it easy for now."

"You're right, you're right," she said. "Thank you for being so supportive, I love you."

 


	11. Press for Action

A couple weeks had passed, and all was going well. Sticking to Bruce’s recommendations, Pepper and the baby were both healthy and progressing nicely.

It was a weekday afternoon, and Pepper had already finished her work for the day and even managed to make it to prenatal yoga class. She was fresh from the shower and lounging on the couch with a cup of tea when Tony came onto their floor from the gym.

“What’s going on Potts?” Tony said walking toward the couch

As soon as Pepper caught a whiff of him, her face scrunched up, “Nothing, but ugh, go take a shower.”

“Deal. But first check this out.” He said, dropping his duffel bag to the floor

“If you’re trying to pitch baby-sized suit designs again, don’t even waste my time.” She said rolling her eyes

He scoffed back at her “I already have the blueprints! It’s practical and innovative.”

“Practical is not giving someone who can’t even talk the ability to fly.” She shot back at him 

“Whatever,” He said giving up, “But have you seen the news lately?” he said grabbing the remote from the coffee table

“No, why?” Pepper asked 

Tony flicked on the TV to one of the national networks. 

Immediate headlines reading: ‘IRONBABY ON THE WAY?’ Below the bold letters was a picture of Pepper, in her tight workout clothes that displayed her belly perfectly, walking out of the yoga studio.

 Pepper’s hand involuntarily lost the grip on her mug, sending green tea all over the floor. “Oh my God.”

Then the TV went to a shot of a reporter who looked like he had his fair share of plastic surgery. He started going off in his cheesy voice, “Stark Industries CEO, Virginia ‘Pepper’ Potts was seen earlier this week in Manhattan, sporting a presumable baby bump.” Pepper felt her stomach starting to turn, “Although a pregnancy has yet to be confirmed, that hasn’t kept people from speculating. It is unclear who the father could be, some are guessing fellow business associates, while many believe it is former boss, and longtime friend, billionaire Tony Stark.” 

Although they were committed to one another, they had never gone public with the terms of their relationship. Unlike Tony, Pepper actually valued her privacy. They were always cautious about being together in public, and did their best to make it seem like nothing more than a friendship. Even though they kept it under wraps very well, that never kept people from speculating.

“Well we definitely need to talk about this, but you reek go shower first.” She said

“Care to join me?” he smirked at her

“Shower. Now.” She said to him with an added eye roll, reaching down to clean up the mess on the floor

He came out not much longer, smelling much better and she was still on the couch, flipping through every news channel. It seemed like every last network was plastered with her face, making all kinds of wild claims.

He made his way to the couch and slumped down by her, “So, what do you think we should do?” Pepper asked, putting her head in his lap

“Well, there’s no beating around the bush when it comes to you being knocked up, that’s only going to get more prominent. How long left like twenty odd weeks?” He said, tangling his hands in her hair

“For your information, less than seventeen. I’m twenty-three weeks....” She paused for thought, counting up the time in her head, “Twenty-three weeks and four days, so less than seventeen weeks if she even stays in for a full forty.”

“Well excuse me,” he jabbed “and how many hours along would you be? How many minutes?”

She lovingly slapped his arm, “Okay, so we release a statement confirming the pregnancy.” She offered, “Which means we would have to go public with our relationship.”

He sat there contemplating for a little bit, “Not necessarily.” He said, and she looked up at him with a puzzled expression.

“Well,” he started “Let’s face it Pep, I’m not the most loved guy in town. Threat is inevitable and if people come to find out I’m a father, it just gives them another target. I just want to do what’s in her best interest, to keep her safe.”

Pepper nodded understandingly, “That’s a valid point. So we can confirm the pregnancy, but keep tight lipped about the details.”

“Exactly,” he agreed,  “I know we probably won’t be able to keep it a secret forever, but we can at least try.”

* * *

 

A little less than a week later Pepper released a statement to the press:

“At this time I am more than overjoyed to announce that I am expecting my first child. However, I ask that my privacy is respected during this new and joyous time.”   - Pepper Potts, CEO Stark Industries

The PR department as Stark Industries wasn’t particularly pleased that Pepper had gone around them and released information to the press without going through them, per Tony’s advice. But at the end of the day she was her own person who was more than capable of talking for herself.

A short while after Pepper released the statement, the media buzz started up again.

Every network was covering the confirmed pregnancy, but still speculating on all the detail.

At the end of the day Pepper was pleased the she and Tony made the choice to keep quiet about the details. They knew the world would eventually find out about their relationship, and that he was the father, but for the time being she knew that this was the best choice for their daughter.


	12. Cravings and Conversation

It was well into the night, and between the kicks to her ribs and her grumbling stomach, Pepper wasn’t getting much shuteye. So she decided to make it Tony’s problem too.

“Tony. Tony, wake up.” She said, nudging him with her foot

“Hm?” he said bolting straight up, flicking the bedside light on “Are you okay?” 

He looked at her with a worried look on his face and she couldn’t help but laugh at him. 

“I’m hungry,” she said, still laughing as the panicked look on his face disappeared 

He rubbed his eyes harshly, “Shall I point you to the fridge Miss Potts?” he said in mock annoyance

She jabbed him with her foot, “There’s nothing in there I want.”

“What exactly do you want, princess?” he grumbled getting out of bed

“Don’t sass me,” She said with a raised eyebrow, “I’m growing your child.”

“Point taken,” he nodded, pulling on a pair of pants “You’re lucky there’s a twenty-four hour place just a few streets down.” 

Pepper sat there for a long minute contemplating, “I want apple juice, and vanilla ice cream and peanut butter.” 

“Will do.” He said heading toward the door

“Ooh! And Olives!” She shouted to him “A lot of olives.”

Two texts with extra requests, and less than an hour later Tony came back with two armfuls of groceries. 

They ended up lying in bed, with some cheesy sitcom being ignored in the background. 

Tony watched her as she popped another olive into her mouth. “We could call her Olive.” He suggested

She coughed a little at his suggestion, “What?” 

“I think it works as a name. Olive.” He said back at her

“Olive?” she said in a displeased tone, “Olive Potts-Stark? I don’t think so.”   
“But you love olives, it’s dainty.” He argued “Olive Stark-Potts, you mean.”

“We’ll figure out the hyphenated last name later,” she said with an eye roll “but I’m not naming my daughter after a food. You like to drink, but we aren’t naming her scotch.” 

They had been arguing over names for weeks, unable to come to a compromise. Anything he like, she didn’t and vise versa. She wanted something classy and feminine while he wanted something edgy and modern.

“I’m just tired of calling the baby her or the baby.” he said 

“We’ll find the her name eventually,” she said “We just have to wait until the perfect one comes along, one we can agree on.”

“Square deal.” He said, resting his hand on her bump “Pass the ice cream.”


	13. Up All Night

Right around when Pepper hit twenty-seven weeks, Tony got a call. He was needed immediately to accompany Natasha on a mission in France. Everyone else was out, and they needed someone who spoke French, with a high caliber knowledge of weaponry, insert Tony Stark.

It was simple mission, he and Nat would be posing as a couple, going after a few wealthy French businessmen involved in the usual weapon and drug crime ring. They had to go to a couple lavish parties, get some names and information and call in the evac team.

It was supposed to be a week max, but he was still hesitant to go.  Pepper laughed at him for being so nervous. This wasn’t the first time he’d been called out, but he was reluctant with a baby on the way. But with Pepper’s green light he went.

But somehow simple turn complicated and one week turned into two and a half...

Luckily i it all ended out successful, and he made it out with only a couple bumps and bruises.

He made it back to the tower smack in the middle of the night.  He bolted for the shower as soon as he made it through the door, knowing better than to get into bed smelling like airplanes and grime.

Right after he slid right into bed behind her, trying his best not to wake her. But she wasn’t asleep.

“Welcome home,” she said to the darkness

“Aw, don’t tell me I woke you up.” He said wrapping his arm around her shoulders

“No,” she said with a sigh, turning to face him “your daughter insists on not letting me sleep.”

“Holy shit,” he said putting both his hands on her bump, “Wow.... you’ve really.”

In the past couple weeks her bump had really popped out. It went from looking like a slight curve to full and round, with her usually innie belly button now slightly poking out.

She sighed again, “I know my stomach enters a room before I do,” She sighed again,  “I miss my abs.”

He tried his best to stifle the chuckle that came out, “How’ve you been otherwise?”

“Hmm, besides getting no sleep,” she said rolling her eyes, “I get these lovely sharp shooting pains in my spine, my boobs could not be more sore, I have to pee like every three minutes. Oh, and I’m convinced her favorite pastime is kicking me in the ribs all night.”

“Well,” he said pressing a kiss to her forehead “I think you’re more beautiful than ever.”

They lay together like that for a long period of time, Pepper even began to drift off, up until Tony felt a rustle where his hand was resting just above her belly button. Pepper woke up with a groan from the sharp kick to the ribs.

“Whoa... was that?” Tony said looking at her with wide eyes

“I told you, she likes to keep me up,” she said to him unimpressed “She clearly takes after her father.”

“Ha, Ha, Ha,” he mocked

She took his hand in hers and slid it a little ways down her belly, “I actually can really get her moving sometimes, if I poke her in the right place.”

Surely enough after a couple seconds of poking around the baby was jolting right where his palm was sitting. Tony was grinning at this point and couldn’t help but kiss her.

Feeling their baby move for the first time was one of the most wonderful moments of his life.

“Wow Peps, that’s amazing.” He said, rubbing her cheek

“It really is isn’t it,” She smiled back, letting her eyes slowly shut

“Get some sleep honey.” He said, stroking her back

She drifted easily into a heavenly sleep.

All until about ten minutes later when she had to get up to go to the bathroom.

As she walked out of the bathroom she couldn’t help but stop and laugh at the sight of Tony laying on his stomach, mouth wide open, sawing logs.

Not everything came perfectly, but that’s the way she liked it.


	14. Progress

Pepper didn’t bother to look up from where she was working when the elevator doors on their floor chimed open. Tony clattered around the entryway for a minute before bustling into the main living area.

“Hey, honey,” Tony walking over to her, pressing a quick kiss to her lips before joining her at the table adjacent to the kitchen

“Hello to you to,” she said, continuing to type away

“Workin’ hard?” he asked, taking an obnoxiously loud bite out of an apple from the bowl sitting on the table 

“Nothing more than your usual PR responses,” she sighed

“Well, how’ve you and the spawn been this afternoon?”

“The spawn?” she echoed, letting out a clipped gust of laughter “Is that what we’re referring to our daughter as now?” shooting an eye roll toward him

Instead of replying, he just took another noisy bite 

“Well, we have officially made it to the third, _and final_ , trimester”

“Wow, it’s crazy to think the finish line isn’t too far away,” he huffed with impression, “I don’t think I have ever anticipated something this much in my life,”

He saw her less enthusiastic face “How are you feeling about it all?”

“Well, the finish line for me is having to push a human out of my vagina, so I’m not necessarily counting down the days,” She smirked, knowing how anatomically correct words made him cringe, “I’m excited, and nervous... anxious I suppose would be the right word to describe the feeling.”

“I think that’s a good thing, it’ll all be worth it in the end,” he said reassuringly, “Plus, if it’s any consolation, I think you are doing quite a fine job of growing a human.”

“It’s a gift, really.” She smiled “Anyway, how’d your appointment go?”

“Eh, the usual. But in good news, at the moment I’m in seemingly good health and I am not dying.  Although I did find something interesting out.”

She looked up at him from her screen, with widened eyes, “Interesting?”

“Yep. I was making the unavoidable smalltalk with the doctor, and somewhere the whole us expecting a baby thing came up. And, well point of the story is after reading my past files, all the palladium poising, the arc reactor-‘foreign things in my body’, on top of all the other stupid shit I’ve done in my life basically should have left me sterile.”

Pepper’s eyebrows jumped to her hairline, “And you’re just being told this now?”

“There’s a possibility it could have been mentioned in the past, but you know I’m not the most keen on listening.”

“Wow” was all she could muster up 

“It’s kind of amazing, right?”

“Absolutely, but miracles happen everyday,” she shrugged

“I guess the universe just really wanted us to have a baby.”

“I guess so” she smiled

 

* * *

A couple hours later, they opted for Chinese takeout and some pointless reality show.

“So, back to the great debate,” Tony said not even minding to finish chewing his orange chicken

“Are we really going to get into this again?” Pepper said, with an added eye roll

“Well I know one thing we can agree on,” he said

“Which is?”

“We know what _not_ to name her,” he smirked, “I can think of a couple, Maya, Christine...” he began rolling off names

It took her a second but she picked up that each one he was listing was someone he had a past relationship with. “Well, that really narrows it down, 

“I’m just pulling your leg,” he said, pressing a kiss to her temple “You made me a changed man, you did the impossible” he smiled at her

She just gave him a loving, semi-hard tap to the head. 

“Emily?” she inquired

“Waayy to overused,” he shot back “Plus I’m pretty sure there was more than one Emily.”

“Emma?” she continued

“Better, I think we’re on the right track. I just want something y’know, something sorta unique, that she won’t just find on a keychain somewhere.”

“Emery?”

“That’s almost exactly it.  But I cant get the emery board thing out of my head .I just don’t want to think of a nail file every time I think of our daughter.” He said, mimicking a nail file with his hands, “You still don’t like Ever?”

She shrugged, “That’s just too foreign sounding to me, plus it seems like a boy’s name to me.”

“Well, I guess we can say that maybe her name should start with an E?” he pointed out

“I can agree to that.” She smiled “maybe we’ll just have to wait and see her to figure her name out.”

He just shrugged and nodded, shoving more lo mien into his mouth.


	15. Makeshift Family

The autumn season was passing quickly. The weather was getting colder, and snow was beginning to fall.

Along with the winter season approaching came the holidays, and in recent years the team started spending them together. Since everyone on the team’s real families were unknown of, dead, or in some other realm, they made a habit of it. They were each other’s makeshift family. It worked out well because each avenger had their own individual floor in the tower. Most of them lived there primarily, but would come in and out.

It didn’t take long for them all to settle on having Thanksgiving dinner together at the tower.

 

In previous years they had Thanksgiving catered, but this year they decided to take a swing at making it themselves, for traditions sake, even if it didn’t turn out as well as it had in the past.

 

* * *

 It didn’t take them long to discover that Bruce wasn’t half bad at cooking, at least among the rest of them, so he was quickly put in charge. They decided to go with a divide and conquer sort of method, so Bruce got the turkey and all of the other sides and desserts were split up amongst the rest of the group.

 

They all shuffled around the spacious kitchen on the communal floor, which luckily had more than one oven and plenty of counter space.

Meanwhile Thor and Clint were in a not-so-heated battle about what was playing on the TV in the background. 

Of course Natasha had to tell Thor about the ‘majestic celebration with floating characters.’

“If you want to watch the parade, just go look out the damn window, it’s only a few streets down.” Clint said (with some form of love) from where he was chopping vegetables

“I have yet to decipher your odd midgardian sporting matches, I do not see the point of such things.” Thor shrugged

“That’s the beauty of dual screens, ladies.” Tony added in, tapping the holographic control panel next to him, splitting the TV screen. One half now playing the Macy’s parade, the other the football game. 

“Oh the holidays” Steve sighed

Within a couple of hours they had managed to pull together a full Thanksgiving dinner that actually didn’t look too bad.

“Well guys, I think I speak for us all when I say we did a pretty damn good job.” Steve said, standing above the full spread laid out on the table

Everyone collectively nodded and raised for a toast as Bruce started to carve the turkey.

Not long after they all dug in Thor started going off about Asgard’s most recent happenings, and Darcy was laughing so hard that beer almost shot out of her nose from something Steve had said at the other end of the table, and Pepper was caught filling Jane in on the current baby updates.

“So is your side of the family excited about all the baby news?” Jane asked her, between bites of stuffing

“Well, the only other people on my side that I really know of are my parents. Not much extended family, no siblings.” Pepper explained “... they didn’t give the best reactions nor are they an active part of my life anymore.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry” Jane offered, with a sympathetic brush to the shoulder

 “No, it’s really okay.” Pepper shook her head,  “This, to me, is worth much more.” 

Her or Tony may not have come from picture perfect upbringings, or loving and devoted families, but it didn’t matter now. In fact, she thought that what they have now, a team of amazing and caring people was so much better. 

Tony and Pepper may not have had an ideal family, but she knew their daughter would.


	16. Trust

One of the only senses in which Tony was somewhat normal was his routine. When there wasn’t a crisis, mission, event, press conference or whatever it may be, his schedule was always relatively the same.

His regular day was wake up, work on anything he needed to for the company and spend the rest of the evening in the lab working on tech or leisurely things. Once in a while the lingering nightmare would come and instead of bothering Pepper, he would just go down to the lab until he couldn’t keep his eyes open any longer.

Pepper knew his routine better than he did. It was safe to say she could tell you exactly where Tony was and what he was doing at any given moment in time.

Except in recent time, she wouldn’t be able to answer that question. She really didn’t think much of it. Tony was a grown man and she had better things to worry and think about than where he was at all times.

Only it started happening more and more frequently.

Tony wouldn’t be on their floor or in the lab at the times he typically was. Once it started happening enough she tried to ask Jarvis about it, only to get the response that the AI couldn’t tell her. 

It would be during the day or sometimes in the middle of the night.

One night he slipped into bed a few hours after she’d given into exhaustion.

“Where were you?” she asked with a yawn

“Oh uh, down in the lab with Bruce, trouble sleeping.” He said

 

* * *

 

It was happening for a couple weeks, and one night he was stupid enough to leave his phone behind. He was also stupid enough never to change his passcode, plus Pepper knew how to override his security settings anyway.

She scrolled through it finding virtually nothing, until she found a text conversation from that night with a contact under the name Jessica.

Jessica, she didn’t know any Jessica, which was enough a reason in her mind to open the conversation, the messages just from that night.

TS: _Heading your way ;)_

J: **Great, I have some new things waiting for you. See you soon.**

TS: _Can’t wait J._

The bastard was having an affair.

She was disgusted; she didn’t know what to think. What was she to do? Here she was nearly nine months pregnant with his child and he was seeing someone else.

She let a couple of days pass, letting what she saw marinate in her mind.  But it was difficult, she could barley talk to him let alone look at him. Good thing he was only there when she went to bed twice that week. 

Finally she’d had it, the straw broke the third time he’d come home in the middle of the night that week.

He’d expected her to be asleep, but there she was sitting up in bed waiting for him. 

“Where have you been?” She asked

“Oh the usual with Bruce down in the l-“

“Don’t even waste my time or yours, I was just talking to Bruce an hour ago. Tell me the truth,” she said with a piercing glance 

“Pep, I-“ He was at a loss for words 

“...was with Jessica?” his eyes went wide “Maybe you shouldn’t leave your phone around or cheat on your very pregnant girlfriend.”

He paused for a minute to sit down next to her on the bed “Oh my god Pepper. Shit this seems bad.” He said scrubbing his face with his hand “Jessica is not who you think she is, and I have not been doing what you think I’ve been doing.”

She just glared back at him.

“Well damn I was planning on waiting for all of this to come out, but I’d rather you not want to kill me when our daughter is born.”

He got up off the bed to get his pair of jeans that he’d taken off when he walked in and brought them back over to the bed. 

“Jessica is not some skanky mistress,” he said reaching into the pocket of the jeans in his hand to pull out a small box “She’s a jeweler who’s been helping me with this.”

He threw the pants back off to the side of the bed to hand her that box. “I was going to wait ‘til, well I didn’t really know exactly, but I was thinking when she was born.”

She opened the box to see the most beautiful, brilliant, shining ring looking back at her. Tears immediately hit her eyes “Is this?”

“Pepper Potts, would you do me the honor of being my wife?”

“Of course you jerk.” She said, letting the tears slip 

He took the box from her hand and slipped the ring onto her left hand before kissing her. 

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry about before.”

“No, you had every reason to think I was doing... well what you thought when in reality I’ve been working on this,” He said holding up her hand “Here I thought I was being sly and you wouldn’t notice me being gone late at night,” He said with a laugh 

“Yeah you really should know your audience a little better,” she smiled back at him

“Oh well, I guess things sometimes just turn out better when they don’t go to plan.” He said bringing his hand to her swollen bump 

“That they do.” She said putting her hand over his

 


	17. Past & Prospect

It was late one evening and Tony and Pepper were lying in bed, a comfortable silence lingering between them. 

Pepper was just drifting off when he broke the silence, “Who would’ve thought?” 

“Hmm?” she yawned, turning her head to face him

“Sorry, my mind was just wandering,” he reached out to move a loose strand of hair behind her ear, “It’s just crazy to think how much has happened, and will happen.” 

“Yeah,” she said with a slight smile

“If someone a year ago would have told me where I’d be now, I could only say they’re insane. Here we are shacked up in the tower, just a couple weeks from having a baby,”

“...And engaged.” She added 

“That too,” he laughed, “So much for trying to keep that quiet.”

“Well, as we’ve said in the past, things just happen better unplanned.” She said ghosting a hand over her bump.

“Very true,” He added, “What kind of parents do you think we’ll be?”

“Well,” she shrugged, contemplating for a moment, “Loving but firm.”

“Exactly, but with our luck she’ll be bat shit crazy.” He laughed

“We’ll just learn how to handle it as we go.” She smiled back

“You can be the mean one, you know do the disciplining.” 

“Yeah, okay.” She scoffed

Tony looked down at Pepper, one of those ‘god I love her’ moments. He brushed a long strand of hair back behind her ear, “I hope she looks just like you.”

That made her blush. “How did I ever get so luck to get a woman as rare as you?”

“Oh stop,” she rolled her eyes lovingly 

“Do you know when I knew I loved you?”

She moved to lay her head on his chest, “Do tell,”

“Remember that charity ball? Back in what ’07 or ’08?” He asked

“That was only a couple weeks after they found you. You weren’t even supposed to be there.” She nodded

“Well yes, but I’m me, so you know. But you were just so breathtaking in that blue dress, curled hair, the whole deal.” He paused, not losing contact with her bright eyes “Anyway, we started dancing and it just... it made me realize there was nobody else but you. Despite my past ways and all that I just knew loved you, needed you.”

“Oh when you left me on the roof?” 

“It was for a good reason!” He slightly raised his voice

“Wow, and look at us now.” She smiled “I think I realized it that night you and Obadiah were on the roof, and you made me push that button. I thought I killed you, it just made me realize my feelings.” 

“Well luckily you didn’t kill me,” he smiled

“Even though sometimes I really want to kill you, I must say I’m glad I didn’t.” 

He leaned down and kissed her with all that he had 

“I love you so much” 

“I love you, too”


End file.
